July 10, 2015 – The Metrognome

If you love cupcakes and want to explore some new options, we’ve compiled a list of little-known places for you. Enjoy!

by Ravi Shet

They are small, happy and cute – no wonder Mumbai loves cupcakes. Be it birthdays, baby showers, anniversaries or any other occasions, cupcakes are ubiquitous. They are even being customised to suit customers’ preferences.

Check out these five places for a cupcake fix in the city.

Cake ‘O’ Licious, Borivali West

This place is situated at Chikuwadi and was founded by Aniket Shinde in January 2014. This outlet is open on all days from 10 am to 10 pm. Their Red Velvet Cheese Cupcake (Rs 25) with cream cheese frosting and Gooey Chocolate Cupcake (Rs 20) with butter and chocolate frosting are really worth trying. Aniket says, “We keep mini cupcakes, since they are pocket friendly. I also want to introduce new flavours.”

Crumbilicious, Colaba

This place near to Colaba Post Office has been serving cupcakes from November 2013 and is open on all days from 11 am to 10 pm. Oreo Cupcake (Rs 100) with white chocolate frosting topped with Oreo biscuits and the Almond Caramel Cupcake (Rs 100) will definitely make your day. For people who are conscious about calories, there is a good collection of mini cupcakes (see image above). Sanah Ahuja Mohan, owner of the place says, “The Oreo Cupcake, Red Velvet Cupcake and Almond Caramel Cupcake are hot sellers, and the mini cupcakes are a hit since it gives people the chance to taste other flavours. Our focus is on quality right from sourcing the ingredients to the baking process and selling the product to customers.”

Cup Cake Factory, Bandra (West)

Situated opposite Gold’s Gym, this outlet was founded in October 2014 by mother-son duo Rita and Aditya Sujan. It is open from 11.30 am to 11.30 pm on all days, except for Tuesdays. Their Boston Cream Cupcake (Rs 70) – its center filled with vanilla custard and frosting of dark chocolate – and Peanut Butter Cupcake (Rs 70) – vanilla cake with peanut butter – are simply yummy. In each bite, you can sense a perfect balance of sweetness in the frosting and the freshness of ingredients. Aditya says, “We experiment with different flavours so that people get more options to explore. If, at the end of the day, something is left unsold, we distribute it to needy people and nearby NGOs, rather than throwing it away and leaving someone hungry.”

Love Sugar & Dough (LSD), Vile Parle (East)

At a walkable distance from Vile Parle railway station, this outlet has been in existence from August 2013. All products served at this outlet are eggless. The Chocolate Blast Cupcake (Rs 20) and Red Velvet Cupcake (Rs 20) are very good. Sunita Shroff, Franchise Owner of the outlet says that mornings and evenings are usually crowded with students who come to the nearby classes and families come over on weekends.

Sugar The Patisserie, Santacruz (West)

Situated opposite Santacruz Police Station, this place is founded by Ketaki Likhite in August 2013. It is open on all days from 11.30 am to 11 pm. Vanilla Ginger Cupcake (Rs 30) with butter cream frosting and ginger candies is the cupcake of the month. Rose Cupcake (Rs 30) with rose cream cheese frosting and Chocolate Cupcake (Rs 30) with dark chocolate frosting are heavenly. Ketaki says, “We don’t compromise on quality at any cost. I am happy when parents order from us or bring their children to us to pacify them.”

(Pictures courtesy Ravi Shet)

How to put scrap to good use

We all have unusable scrap lying around the house. It is possible to put it to good use with a little creativity.

by Reyna Mathur

We buy so many things every year, big and small, and as time passes, many of these things begin to age. But instead of throwing them away, we can re-use them or break them up to decorate other objects, too.

Rummage around the house and you will find several useless things – old magazines, discarded glass bottles, plastic pots and containers, old clothes, faded paintings, shoelaces, frayed ribbons, to name just a few. You may be obsessive about clearing out the junk, but if you decide to get creative, you can reuse the scrap.

Old wooden pieces and chips: There is nothing you can do with pieces of wood left over from creating furniture. All you can do it throw them away or let the carpenter clear them. Instead, why not use the wood chips to create a 3D effect design? Unless you are very proficient with a hammer and chisel, you will require the help of a carpenter to do this. Select a surface with a design – an old faded painting is a good place to start – and using a pencil and scale, demarcate the areas of the painting you want to create a 3D effect on. Then instruct your carpenter to copy your design and specifications and further create chips of exact shape and thickness to paste over the painting. You can colour the wood chips in the colours of the surface you have pasted them on, and voila! Your 3D design is ready. You can even use this technique to create greeting cards or glam up flower vases.

Magazines and newspapers: You can create pretty bookmarks or paper 3D cut-outs simply by cutting old papers of different designs and colours into specific sizes and gluing them one over another to create a thick paper surface. If you’re throwing a party, create your own decorations by using old papers lying about the house. If you’re fond of making murals and montages, put magazines to good use for the purpose. If you have old newspapers lying around, use them to make miniature kites and colour the finished product. These can be stuck on walls for a pretty effect.

Marbles: Many homes have entire jars of marbles stashed away. The great thing about marbles is that they have great aesthetic appeal and can be glued to almost any surface permanently. You can create a very beautiful showpiece by gluing marbles in a design of your choice using a good adhesive. Lightly tie up the showpiece with string till the glue sets and the entire assembly is able to bear its own weight. Alternately, you can try gluing marbles on the outside of a light bulb to give a stunning visual effect once the light is switched on.

Old sarees and clothes: It is a good idea to give away your old clothes to the needy, but if you have any of them still lying around the house, you can put them to use. How about making a large patchwork quilt or blanket using old cloth scraps, stitching them together on a base cloth, and stuffing it with cotton? If you are adept at using a needle and thread, you could stitch clothes for small children out of sarees and old shirts, or make beautiful washcloths to use around the house.

Buttons, broken magnets, badges: Every house has a huge collection of these items. Simply cull buttons of different sizes and colours and stitch them in a crazy pattern on a plain handbag. Do the same with old pins, badges and broken magnets to jazz up your bags and skirt hems. If you wear ankle socks, you can make them more interesting by sewing buttons along their elastic band. Some people even sew different coloured buttons on plain canvas shoes for an interesting effect.

Ribbons: Ribbons can be put to a variety of uses, especially in embellishing the surface of objects. You can tie two or three ribbons of different colours (but the same width) end to end and use the same to tie up wrapping paper on a gift. Or you can create floral patterns by twining ribbons together. If you have thin ribbons, use them to make wristbands. You can also braid three ribbons together and tie up your documents in them. Alternately, twirl several ribbons together and tie up the ends; use this as a hair band or like a loose scrunchie.

(Pictures courtesy singmah.com.sg, heavypetal.ca, theibtaurisblog.com. Images are used for representational purpose only)